


Cultural Differences

by Irving-Braxiatel (Elycia7)



Category: Gallifrey (Big Finish Audio)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/F, Multi, Other, Otherstide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-27
Updated: 2015-12-27
Packaged: 2018-05-09 18:53:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5551460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elycia7/pseuds/Irving-Braxiatel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Romana is set on making Leela have a merry Otherstide</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cultural Differences

**Author's Note:**

> Classic Who Secret Santa present for Pattroughton. Hope you enjoy it and sorry it's a little late!

“And so we will be leaving the capitol tomorrow morning, and then we have 3 days to ourselves before… Leela?” Romana asked.

Leela had fallen behind, and did not appear to be listening to what Romana had to say.

“You are being unusually quiet today,” Romana told her.

“I am listening to you,” Leela told her.

“Well, yes. But I would like your opinion on this matter. This is your Otherstide we are talking about as well, and I want to be sure you don’t feel left out.”

“It does not matter to me, Romana,” Leela confessed.

Romana frowned. “Leela, we want you to enjoy this as well. Otherstide is a time to celebrate that which we value most. And we can’t do that without you there.”

Leela stopped Romana by gently placing her hand on her upper arm. “I understand, Romana. And I am happy that you want to celebrate it with me. I will honour your traditions, as I know you would try to honour mine. But I do not care which of your traditions they are.”

“I know,” Romana sighed. “Regardless, I would be pleased if you did care. I know I may not always show enough interest in your culture Leela. But I try to understand. And I want you I feel that this is also a time of celebration for you.”

“But it is not, Romana,” Leela said softly. “You Time Lords do not like my traditions. Not even you, Braxiatel and Narvin. You think that the ways of the Sevateem are  _ primitive _ .” She pronounced he last word with great care, saying each syllable on its own.

“We don’t, Leela,” Romana tried to assure her. But she knew that was not entirely true.

“For a politician you are not a very good liar,” Leela laughed dryly. She let go of Romana and started to move away.

Before she could do so Romana took her hand. “We try not to, Leela. We certainly don’t think of you as primitive. It’s just that your traditions are very different from ours. And it is very easy for us Time Lords to forget that not everything that is different is lesser.”

Leela pulled her hand back. “But you do not know the ways of the Sevateem, Romana. When I invite you to come with me to celebrate the customs of my people, you do not want to come.”

“You know I don’t have the time, Leela.”

Leela shook her head. “But you could try to make it. You have time for your own customs, but not mine.”

“That’s different. I-“ Romana started.

“It is not different, Romana,” Leela told her. “You do not want my holidays, only your own. I am glad that I have you Romana. And Braxiatel and Narvin. But you cannot make Gallifrey my home when it is not.”

Romana had nothing to say to that, and she stood and watched as Leela stalked down the corridor in search of threats.

Romana did not try to raise the issue with Leela again that day. Even if she had wanted to, there was no time for it. They had a tight schedule to meet. In order for Romana to actually be able to take time off she first had to ensure that Gallifrey would not fall in her absence. That meant talking to every single High Council member, as well as the leaders other time-faring races. No one should have doubt about what to do and how to contact her if an emergency arose.

Romana’s last meetings had taken place in her office, which was practically at the heart of the Presidential Palace. This meant there had been no need for Leela to stay and protect her, and she had gone home for the day. Romana on the other hand had ended up working until long past second sunset and into the small hours of the night. And when she finally did make it to their private chambers she did not immediately go to bed.

She was too preoccupied thinking about hers and Leela’s conversation earlier that day to sleep. She knew that Leela did not always feel welcome on Gallifrey. But surely Leela felt welcome with  _ her _ ? She was certainly putting a lot of effort into making Leela feel that she had a place on Gallifrey. But perhaps she had not done enough? She had been awfully busy lately, and it was always difficult to tell these things when it came to Leela.

She was not surprised to find both Braxiatel and Narvin still awake. The two of them had both volunteered to take care of the menu for tomorrow’s Otherstide party. Naturally, in the spirit of Otherstide, they had decided to cooperate. It had nothing to do with the fact that Romana had told them on no uncertain terms that they were not to argue about who got to decide.

But obviously, this didn’t mean they actually agreed on what to serve. They were sitting in the small library not far from their bedroom, talking in hushed voices presumably to not wake Leela from her well-deserved sleep.

“I thought you said you know how to cook, Narvin,” Braxiatel remarked.

“I do. You are the one who is wrong, Braxiatel,” Narvin retorted. “You season, then stir, then you let it simmer.”

Braxiatel shook his head. “No, no, no. You let it simmer, then you season it and stir.”

Romana cleared her throat and they both looked up. “I’m afraid we have bigger problems than the menu.”

“Oh?” Braxiatel asked as Romana sat down next to Narvin on the couch.

“Leela is upset,” Romana told them. “I’m not entirely sure if she actually wants to celebrate Otherstide with us.”

“What makes you think that?” Narvin asked.

“She practically told me this morning. I think she is only taking part to appease us,” Romana sighed.

“She did seem a little out of sorts earlier today,” Braxiatel agreed. “I take it you are planning something to make her change her mind?”

“I certainly intend to try,” Romana told him. “I want to make it something she can recognise as well. A holiday for all of us.”

Narvin and Braxiatel exchanged a glance. They knew the tone of Romana’s very well. Once she was like this there was no going back. She was going to go ahead with whatever idea she had, regardless of what they said or did.

“What are you planning?” Narvin asked cautiously.

“I thought that was obvious,” Romana frowned.

“Enlighten us,” Braxiatel urged.

“We are going to incorporate some of her customs in our Otherstide celebrations.”

“And do you know of any suitable customs?” Narvin asked.

“I was hoping one of you two would,” Romana admitted. “Perhaps she is right. Perhaps we don’t try hard enough to understand her.”

Neither of them had anything to say to that. Of course Leela being human was not something they ever forgot about it. She would never let that happen. It was just that it was sometimes easy to ignore the differences between then brought on by Leela’s ancestry.

“But we are going to make it up to her right now,” Romana told them.

“I doubt she will be willing to tell us everything we want and need to know if we wake her now and ask it of her,” Braxiatel pointed out.

“No, you’re right,” Romana granted. “She is as stubborn as the rest of us. If not more. We have to find another way to learn. And fast. I fear this issue may be far larger than we can comprehend.”

“How so?” Narvin asked.

Romana sighed, then stood. “It doesn’t matter.”

“Leela isn’t going to leave us, Romana,” Braxiatel assured her.

Romana turned and walked towards one of the bookshelves.

“Romana-“ Narvin started.

“Shush,” Romana ordered. “I need to think.”

Narvin and Braxiatel shared a look, before both of them came to the conclusion that for their own safety staying quiet was probably a good idea.

“I’m going to sleep now,” Romana declared dejectedly after having been deep in thought for almost an hour, to no avail. “We can only hope Leela will enjoy tomorrow’s festivities as well.”

As she left, no less worried than before, she could hear Narvin and Braxiatel’s previous conversation starting up again.

“We still need to actually agree how we are going to prepare dinner,” Braxiatel pointed out.

“I thought we had settled that earlier,” Narvin sighed.

“Ah, but that was just the main course. We will need to prepare dessert as well.”

“I don’t recall dessert being a part of a traditional Otherstide meal.”

“Oh, but Narvin. Otherstide wouldn’t be Otherstide without ulanda fruit pudding.”

-

When Romana woke she had found two messages waiting for her. One from her office asking her to come in and finish some paperwork before she left to celebrate Otherstide, and one from Braxiatel saying that he and Narvin had already left.

Romana didn’t understand why her work could not wait another three days, but she had little choice but to do it if someone needed something to be done urgently. Reading through some unimportant bureaucrat’s reports for the last quarter was far from how she wanted to spend her Otherstide morning, but at least Leela was here to keep her company. 

“There,” she proclaimed once she had written up her approval of the report. “That should do it.”

“We can go now?” Leela asked and stood from her position across the room

“Finally, yes.” Romana stood as well, offering Leela a smile.

“And we can go to your home? Outside of the citadel?”

“We can yes.”

“Good,” Leela said.

“Good?” Romana asked. “But I thought…”

“I was angry yesterday,” Leela admitted.

“With reason,” Romana granted. “Now, come on. We can talk this through later. I know you wanted us to travel by hovercraft so you could get some fresh air. But seeing as we are already late, we are going to travel by TARDIS.”

“Will we still make it for your celebration?” Leela asked.

“Our celebration,” Romana corrected. “And yes, we will. But Narvin and Braxiatel are all alone together, and not only that they also have to work together.”

Leela laughed at this. “They will be fine Romana. Like I, they want you to be happy. And they know that this is important to you.”

“It’s our first Otherstide together, Leela. I just want it to be memorable,” Romana confessed as the two of them entered the presidential TARDIS.

“It will be,” Leela told her.

“I hope so.” Romana set the TARDIS in motion with the flick of a switch and seconds later they were at their destination.

Leela stepped in front of the door. “Romana, what is wrong?”

“Nothing you need to worry yourself with today, Leela,” Romana tried to assure her.

“But it worries you,” Leela said.

“It always does. Today is no exception.”

Leela frowned. “It is not Gallifrey, is it? You do not have to work all the time Romana. It is not wrong to need help.”

“No, Leela, that isn’t it,” Romana assured her. “We should go now. Narvin and Braxiatel will wonder where we are by now.”

“Not before you have told me what is wrong,” Leela said decidedly.

Romana sighed. “I worry, Leela, that you really will leave us some day. I know you don’t want to be on Gallifrey, and you know I can’t leave. There’s nothing keeping you here. I’m just trying to give you some happy memories of us.”

Leela hesitated before she spoke. “You are wrong Romana. There is something keeping me here. Do you really think I would have stayed on Gallifrey if it weren’t because I want to be with you?”

“Well, no.”

Leela smiled at Romana and took her hands. “You do not need to try to give me happy memories Romana, because I will not leave you.”

“I am very glad to hear that, Leela,” Romana told her, and gave Leela a light kiss on the lips. "Merry Otherstide."  


"Merry Otherstide, Romana."


End file.
